Hot Dame! Helen Mirren Covers Allure’s Anti Anti-Aging Issue

by Kristen Heinzinger August 14, 2017

written by Kristen Heinzinger August 14, 2017

Carmen March dress. Lady Grey earrings.

It’s a new day at Allure. As 72-year-old Helen Mirren graces the September cover for the first time (really!), an issue that was once dubbed “anti-aging” has made itself over as an “anti anti-aging” issue. The glossy is eliminating the term and is petitioning the entire beauty industry to follow suit. “Whether we know it or not, we’re subtly reinforcing the message that aging is a condition we need to battle…” EIC Michelle Lee wrote in her editor’s letter. “If there’s one inevitability in life, it’s that we’re getting older. Every minute. Every second…. We know it’s not easy to change packaging and marketing overnight. But together we can start to change the conversation and celebrate the beauty in all ages.”

Inside the issue, Mirren discusses politics, feminism, beauty, and owning her age. Devour a few tidbits from her interview with Lee below, and scoop up an issue when it hits newsstands August 22!

On Allure’s resolution to stop using the term “anti-aging”…
“I said, ‘This word “anti-aging”—we know we’re getting older. You just want to look and feel as great as you can on a daily basis.’”

On President Donald Trump, she scoffs…
“[Trump] just said and did whatever it took to get what he desired. That is quite terrifying, because it means there’s a lack of morality there and a lack of conscientiousness.”

On Ivanka Trump…
“[Ivanka] talks a good game, but there’s no substance. Her book is so ignorant about how the majority of women live, talking about ‘Make time for yourself to have a massage.’ Puh-lease.”

On feminism…
“I wasn’t into the very didactic feminism of the ’60s and ’70s because I liked wearing makeup and high heels. That was a no-no. It was sort of ‘That’s playing to the patriarchy.’ I was thinking, Well, I just really like it. Then as feminism developed, they realized you can like nice dresses, high-heeled shoes, and makeup. That’s not stopping you from being feminist.”

On being starstruck…
“Oh, I’m always starstruck any time I meet a movie star. I’m paralyzed. I say, ‘Right, Helen, just be natural; just be yourself. Don’t talk too much; don’t stare.’ I have to give myself all these instructions.”

On why she’d never shame anyone for getting a nip or needle prick…
“Anyone should be able to do what they want. If they look in the mirror and go, ‘I look good’ and go out in a positive way—I don’t want anyone to feel miserable.”